April 3, 1944

THE B.C.

LUMBER WORKER

Page Three

The

President's COLUMN

4

p Vb the city of Vancouver three

weeks ago a Conference on postwar planning was called by the Shipyard Workers Federation. Tn attendance were 300 delegates representing 152 organizations made up of 10 trade unions, 28 public bodies, seven municipal councils, political parties, church groups and veterans associations, with 10 CCF MLA’s present.

This conference constituted, in my opinion, one of the most out- standing and widely represented conferences in B.C. for many a day. The main theme of the con- ference was the winning of the war over the Axis in the shortest possible time, and the conversion of industry in the peace that must follow that would create jobs at decent wages and social security for all,

The official name of the Council established is the Industrial Re- construction and Social Develop- ment Council with the main slo- gan “Combine Forces for Common Progress.” This conference was an indication of the great change that is beginning to take strong shape in the labor movement of Canada and all of the progressive forces which reject skepticism and defeatism, repudiating the profits of boom and inevitable crises of unemployment dissipating our -na- tional unity.

Plans for a large scale invasion of the European continent and combined offensive against Ger- man Nazism is clearly defined and far advanced. The relationships within the United Nations are welded and in firm agreement to “Work together in the war and in the peace that will follow.”

This historigal agreement of the Allied Powers settled in Moscow and Cairo and concluded in the declaration of Teheran. The Van- couver citizens conference to win the war and establish a just and lasting peace augers well for our Allied cause because it is con- cerned with the problems of the people. The home front is rising to match the fighting front. To- gether with our armed services we can fight confident and vic- toriously for victory and a better Canada.

IWA Is Certified At Rowans Mill

Announcement was made last week by Gladys Shunaman, Sec- retary of Local 1-217 that notifica- tion had been received from the Minister of Labor that Local 1-217 had. been certified as the sole col- lective bargaining agency for the employees of Rowen Shingle Mill at Mitchell Island.

Negotiations are expected to be opened up this week in the mat- ter of the agreement on wages. Shop Stewards report that very few adjustments will be neces- sary to bring the wage rates in this mill in line with the highest standards in the industry in B.C. ‘This mill employs 27 men.

union. There is no longer any Follette Enquiry is clear.

Here, for example, is part of a letter entered officially as an ex- hibit from the Foster Service (de- tective agency) to a prospective client:

Your letter of July 28 is re- ceived. With reference to your enquiry about my experience and what | am prepared to do in case of disturbance, etc.

First, | will say that if we are employed before any union or or- ganization is formed by the em- ployees, there will be no strike and no disturbance. This does not say there will be no union formed, but it does say that we will contro! the activities of the union and direct its policies, pro- vided we are allowed a free hand by our clients.

Second, if a union is formed and no strike is on or expected to be declared within 30 or 60 days, although we are not in the same position as we would be in the above case, we could—and | believe with success—CARRY ON AN INTRIGUE WHICH WOULD

RESULT IN FACTIONS, DIS- AGREEMENTS, RESIGNA- TIONS OF OFFICERS, AND

GENERAL DECREASE IN THE “MEMBERSHIP.”

The blacklist, and the labor spies paid to build it, are no legend in the B.C. woods. The effective way it was used to block unionization of British Columbia’s basic indus- j try, lumber, are well known to all \those who have been around the ,camps and mills for any length of time. But in spite of stools, finks and blacklists the lumber-workers have built their union—“union pre- vention” is a thing of the past; “union-smashing” is the only tactic for the new period! Those who still seek to deny labor its democratic right, who still seek to undermine the union by such underhand, sub- versive methods have been forced by the success and ever-growing strength of the union to change their plans.

For the protection of our mem- bership and the preservation of our union, we must make our-

1 1 1

Phone 220 ee oe

The Ancient Art of ‘UNION-BUSTING’

By NIGEL MORGAN

Comparatively few are the number of pioneer members who actively worked for the es- tablishment of our union who have not run up against (many at the expense of their job) the “purveyor of industrial information,” commonly known as the industrial stool-pigeon or labor spy. In the United States some very interesting facts have been brought to light by the La Follette Civil Liberties Committee, brilliantly summarized in the book, “The Labor Spy Racket,” by Leo Huberman of the CIO. According to evidence adduced before this government enquiry, which took eight volumes (over two and a half million stenographic word) to record, over $80,000,000 is spent annually in the U.S. among 230-odd companies who are known to employ well over 40,000 operatives or “labor spies.”

These 230 agencies sold a unique service—first “Union-Prevention,” and if that failed “Union Smashing.” Industrialists who bought the service, according to their own evidence, wanted to know about their workers’ attempts to organize. They paid eighty million dollars a year to keep their plants from becoming unionized, or if they were unionized, to break the doubt about it. The record of the government-established La

selves acquainted with these new tactics and maintain a vigilant look- out against organized disruption and wildcat, irresponsible action, which even if sugar-coated in mili- tant phrases, can achieve nothing but to harm and destroy the in- fluence and prestige of our great organization.

A typical example of the new tactic is to be found in an article appearing in the “Sitka Open For- um,” official organ of the com- pany-union set-up at Sitka Spruce mill in Vancouver. The article states, in part:

“Since the certification of the IWA here employees of the Sitka Spruce are facing a real menace. It is absolutely necessary that we listen to the voice of experience that is calling to us from sev- eral of the larger mills in this district. We must profit by their mishap and while sympathizing with them in every way, take steps to prevent a like fate for ourselves. CONVERSING WITH FRIENDS WHO ARE IN A LARGE SUB-LOCAL OF THE IWA THEY INFORMED ME THAT THEY WERE NEGOTIAT- ING with their employees ‘for awage increase and in several in- stances met with great success. In fact the gains being made were so great that the head office of the IWA asked this local to step aside and let them, the real lead- ers negotiate with this company, and so add to their own prestige. Being dutiful servants of Mr. Pritchett and his cohorts the local shop stewards gave way, whereupon the leading IWA ex- ecutives entered into negotiations with the company officials and had them sign the “master agree- ment.”

Now, when the local shop stew- ards inquired about the wage in- creases they were told that the “master agreement” had been signed and they could do nothing further for a year. This left the shop stewards holding the bag, for they now had to tell their local members that they must lose out, or had been sold out to

Wilcock & Co. Ltd.

QUALITY MEATS

Fresh and Smoked Fish Farm Produce, Butter and Eggs

COURTENAY 2s ee:

the tune of $12.00 per month, and are they mad? Now a close study of this contract leads us to believe that this “master agree- ment” was not a child of the IWA at all. Rather, it is a pro- duct of the Lumbermen’s Associ- ation. For as one operator put it, “There is no harm in signing it, as it only states what we must give according to law.”

Even the vicious distortion con- tained cannot hide the fact that the mill referred to is Fraser Mills. One of two things can be held responsible for the origin of such unjustifiable ané untruthful distortions—either a complete fail- ure to understand and properly re- port the significance of an indus- try-wide contract and the benefits it contained, or as the Foster Serv- ice stated in their letter quoted earlier in this article, “Carry, on an intrigue which would result in factions, disagreement, resignation of officers, and a general decrease in membership. Such statements must be recognized for what they are, the best type of anti-union propaganda that this company- union setup at Sitka Spruce could use in its fight with IWA Local 1217.

There is lots of room inside the IWA for plenty of discussion, criti- cism of officers and difference of opinion on policly—but there is no room for sniping either inside or outside union meetings. In decid- ing policies and drafting programs ; the fullest democracy is and must! be allowed but when a decision! is finally reach in the union, as

Tpr Craig Pritchett Home On Furlough

Tr, =

eldest son of District President Harold Pritchett has just returned to the

Trooper Craig Pritchett,

officers training camp in Camp Borden from a week’s furlough.

Craig was active in the Loggers Navy during the summer of 1940 when he assisted President Me- Cuish in the Queen Charlotte Islands. Prior to entering the tank corp he was a student of the John Oliver High School, leaving there to work in the Vancouver Shipyards as a heater.

in all truly democratic organiza- tions, the will of the majority rules. That is part of the oath we all took on joining the union, and it is one that must be lived up to.

This article is not written for the purpose of causing suspicion among the members of the union or for the purpose of instituting a “witch hunt.” It is written so that the members may know and understand how the racket is car- ried on. The union has at the pres- ent time enough evidence on hand to compile some very interesting documents in this regard and it is hoped that this article will serve to acquaint our members with the “true” nature of the “labor spy game.”

Lavers Dept. Stores

Men’s and Ladies’ Wear

Gene

COURTENAY and

ral Dry Goods

PORT ALBERNI

—

Cooke’s Meat Market

“The Reliable Butcher Shop”

Fresh, Smoked and Home Cooked Meats

Phone 370

COURTENAY, B.C. tuepeanietatetn